In This Issue
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RenewablesThe Energy Industry in Xinjiang, China: Potential, Problems, and Solutions
The autonomous region of Xinjiang has an important strategic position in China’s economy—which consumes more energy than any other nation—yet several conditions limit the most effective use of its fuels. This article provides an overview of the situation. Since ancient times, the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (Xinjiang) has been in a particularly important position in […]
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Coal
POWER Digest
China Makes Nuclear Export Gains in Argentina, Romania. As it boosts its domestic nuclear power capacity, China is also snapping up lucrative contracts to build new reactors abroad. This November, China
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RenewablesStatoil to Build World’s First Floating Offshore Wind Farm
Nearly five years after the world’s first large-scale floating deepwater wind turbine was erected 11 kilometers (km) offshore Karmøy, southeast Norway, Norwegian energy firm Statoil has made a final
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Renewables
Record Changes and Uncertainty Reshape the U.S. Utility Industry
Wind production in the U.S. hit record highs in October 2015, natural gas prices hit record lows, and solar photovoltaic (PV) adoption is continuing to grow to unprecedented levels. Energy storage prices are
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IIOT PowerI4GEN: EPRI’s Power Plant of Tomorrow Concept
The power industry is challenged by many changes in generating portfolio, operating mission profiles, grid interconnections, customer engagement, and a workforce that is losing knowledge and experience to
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Gas
Natural Gas Prices, Regulation to Reshape U.S. Generation
The near-simultaneous surge in U.S. natural gas production and recent enactment of environmental regulations will usher U.S. power supply from reliance on coal to increased usage of natural gas and renewables
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NuclearTransforming Information Technology at the South Texas Project Nuclear Plant
In today’s world, it’s hard to operate a power plant without the benefit of information technology (IT) systems. Staff tasked with managing these systems can take a beating when the tools don’t work as advertised. Here’s how one IT department focused on building and sustaining cross-functional relationships, culminating in a win-win for the department and […]
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IIOT PowerWireless Sensor Technology Measures Torsional Shaft Vibration in Turbine Generators
The Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), in conjunction with Suprock Technologies, has conducted a research project to develop and demonstrate an advanced wireless sensor technology for monitoring torque
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HRRisk Management: Using Resilience Engineering to Develop a More Reliable Workforce
All power generating companies and plant operators value reliability, but they may be paying too little attention to a critical variable: people. One million. That’s the approximate number of people in the sky over the U.S. as you read this article. Remarkably, all will land safely. Aviation achieves among the highest reliability of any industry. […]
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RenewablesThe Energy Industry in Xinjiang, China: Potential, Problems, and Solutions [PRINT VERSION]
The autonomous region of Xinjiang has a strategic position in China’s economy, yet several conditions limit the most effective use of its fuels. This article provides an overview of the situation. A more detailed version, with maps and tables, appears here under the same title. Since ancient times, the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (Xinjiang) has held […]
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NuclearOil- and Gas-Rich UAE Banks on Nuclear Power
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is a country flush with fossil fuels, so why does its government want nuclear power to form the backbone of its electricity supply? POWER interviewed Emirates Nuclear Energy Corp. CEO Mohamed Al Hammadi to find the answer and to learn more about the world’s largest in-progress nuclear construction project. Located […]
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CommentaryThe Journey Ahead
January has traditionally been POWER’ s forecast issue, and there’s one overriding prediction I feel confident making: The speed of changes will continue to exceed the power industry’s ability to fully
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Commentary
Clean Power Plan Means Opportunities for Power Plants
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published the final version of the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan (CPP) on Oct. 23, 2015, and within hours more than two dozen challenges were filed
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O&MGrid Resiliency: A Strategy for Keeping Transformers Safe
Grid resiliency has become a widely discussed topic recently. Experts have been called before congressional hearings to testify on the topic, and close calls—including a massive solar storm that missed Earth
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Commentary
Engage the Next Generation of Energy Leaders
Millennials have landed in the workforce. This is the generation that marketing and lifestyle gurus have been attempting to dissect, and now senior executives are starting to internalize what all the fuss was about—Millennials are a little different. At Student Energy, we’re working with university students to create the next generation of energy leaders. We […]
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Legal & RegulatoryIEA: World’s Power Mix Is Seeing Unprecedented Transformation
A significant transformation of the global power mix is under way, noted the International Energy Agency (IEA) in its newly released World Energy Outlook (WEO-2015). Renewables are getting subsidized boosts
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Legal & Regulatory
The Generating Company Challenge: Manage Change While Maintaining Reliability
In mid-November, current members of POWER’ s Generating Company Advisory Team responded by email to a set of questions about their concerns, challenges, and new initiatives as they plan for the year ahead
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Cybersecurity
New College Program Focuses on Cybersecurity for the Utility Industry
Thomas Edison State College, located in Trenton, N.J., has created an online program through which students can obtain a graduate certificate in cybersecurity with a focus on utility environments. The
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IIOT PowerBig Data and the Industrial Internet Meet the Power Plant
Another megatrend has hit the power generation industry: the Internet of Things (IoT)—countless devices with embedded electronics, sensors, and connectivity to digitally communicate with one another and
